The Abbott government has been criticised for its tight-lipped stance on an asylum-seeker tragedy in which at least 21 people are believed to have drowned.
Another 30 or so people are still missing and feared dead after a boat sank in rough seas en route to Australia off the coast of Java on Friday.
Strong waves had prevented Indonesian rescuers from resuming their search for survivors early Saturday morning but three more people were eventually rescued to take the number of confirmed survivors to 28.
It's believed to be the first fatal asylum-seeker incident since the coalition took power, and comes after another boat was rescued by the Australian navy off the Indonesia coast a day earlier.
But the details of both incidents remain sketchy, with Prime Minister Tony Abbott refusing to comment as he prepares for his first trip to Indonesia as prime minister.
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It brings into question the coalition's new policy of providing weekly briefings on asylum-seeker arrivals instead of the regular updates given by the former Labor government.
Labor has called for a full briefing into the incidents, and what role the Royal Australian Navy may have played in two rescues.
Interim Labor leader Chris Bowen said the government had promised to give briefings if there was a tragedy or a significant event at sea.
"This can't wait for (immigration minister) Mr (Scott) Morrison's weekly briefing," Mr Bowen told reporters in Melbourne.
"These updates should be provided as and when the government can."
The Australian Greens immigration spokesperson Sarah Hanson-Young said the lives of asylum seekers weren't dictated by meeting dates and pre-set briefings.
"Even in face of children dying, it seems the coalition's media blackout continues," she said in a statement.
Mr Abbott declined to speak with journalists about the incident as he left the AFL grand final breakfast in Melbourne on Saturday.
Finance Minister Mathias Cormann did speak about the incident, but wouldn't give specifics.
"This is not my area of portfolio responsibility," he told Sky News on Saturday, adding the incident was "distressing".
"Scott Morrison as the minister for immigration will of course be providing a proper and detailed briefing as part of Operation Sovereign Borders at the appropriate time."
He was confident asylum seeker issues wouldn't overshadow talks between Mr Abbott and Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, and that matters such as trade would remain high profile.
Mr Abbott will arrive in Indonesia amid tension between the countries over the coalition's asylum-seeker policy, particularly their plan to turn boats back.
Indonesian foreign minister Marty Natalegawa warned this week that any violation of his country's borders could damage neighbourly relations.
